2 ACES COVID Questions

Attachment A

Draft 10/30/2020

2020 Annual Capital Expenditures Survey – Questions Related to Coronavirus Pandemic

Introduction

The U.S. Census Bureau is requesting your assistance in testing some survey questions focused on understanding the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on your company’s capital expenditure investments.

If you agree to take part in this study, you will complete a web survey about the pandemic’s impact. You will be asked to read the instructions and questions aloud and then “think aloud” as you answer each question. This may feel a little unnatural, but it will help us understand how you think about and answer each question. Here’s an example:

Suppose this were a survey about your home and one of the questions asked, “How many bedrooms are there in your house?” Someone thinking aloud as they respond might say, “What do you mean by bedrooms—are these just where people sleep? If so, I have 2 bedrooms. But if we are counting anything with a closet and a window, we also have a study. So perhaps, we have 3 bedrooms. I’m going with where people sleep, so I’ll answer 2 bedrooms.”

At the end of the survey I will ask you some additional questions to get your feedback on the survey questions. The purpose of this conversation is to learn whether the survey questions are worded clearly and, if they are not, what changes should be made—your actual answers to the survey questions are not the focus of this interview. I did not write the questions and won’t be offended if you critique them. Your honest feedback is very important. If something is confusing, it means that the question or instructions should be improved.

Your participation is especially important, as it will help the Census Bureau improve these questions to accurately measure economic activities of businesses like yours. Before we begin, do you have any questions?

Let's get started with some background information about your business.

[Interviewer: See the interview protocol for background questions.]

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Q1

In 2020, did this company receive financial assistance through a Federal, state, or local government assistance program related to the Coronavirus pandemic?

Select only one.

⃝₁ Yes

⃝₂ No, did not apply for financial assistance

⃝₃ No, applied for but did not receive financial assistance

⃝₄ Don’t know

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Q1.1

[Ask if Q1=1] Approximately what share of the financial assistance was spent on the following:

Estimates are acceptable when needed. Please enter 0 as appropriate.

Dollar Amount

Payroll: [_$_______________________]

Rent/mortgage: [_$_______________________]

Utilities: [_$_______________________]

Capital expenditures [_$_______________________]

Other – describe [_$_______________________]

Total: [_$_______________________]

[PROGRAMMER: use text entry format with numeric value validation]

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Q2

[Ask if Q1=1] What would have happened to this company’s payroll in the absence of the financial assistance related to the Coronavirus pandemic?

Select all that apply.

₁ Reduced hours

₂ Reduced pay

₃ Reduced staff

₄ Closed business (eliminated entire payroll)

₅ Other – describe

₆ No change

₇ Don’t know

₈ Not applicable

[PROGRAMMER: DK and NA options set as “exclusive” to prevent being selected with other options]

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Q3

In 2020, did this company change its planned capital expenditures due to the Coronavirus pandemic?

⃝₁ Yes

⃝₂ No

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Q3.1

[ask if Q3=1] What changes did this company make to its planned capital expenditures due to the Coronavirus pandemic?

Select all that apply.

₁ Cancelled planned expenditure(s)

₂ Decreased planned expenditure(s)

₃ Postponed planned expenditure(s)

₄ Increased planned expenditure(s)

₅ Introduced new unplanned expenditure(s)

₆ Other – describe

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Q4

In 2020, did this company’s capital expenditures fund any investment related to social distancing or safety in response to the Coronavirus pandemic?

Select only one.

⃝₁ Yes – investment was in addition to planned capital expenditures

⃝₂ Yes – investment replaced planned capital expenditures

⃝₃ No

Thank you for your participation in our study.

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